More than a Shadow
by rarmaster
Summary: A trilogy of oneshots written for #kairineedslove2k15's Kairi Week, and then for a later Namine Week on tumblr! Namine wants to talk to Kairi about the events of Castle Oblivion (namely, about Sora) but it turns into much more than that.
1. More than a Shadow

**Summary:** Namine wants to talk to Kairi about the events of Castle Oblivion (namely, about Sora) but ends up talking about more than that. For #kairineedslove2k15's Kairi Week, which was like a month ago, I'm just finally putting this here now that the series is complete.

 **Abuse mentions tw,** NamiKai implied but it's vague and can mean anything from shippy to two good friends to sisters, your choice.

* * *

" _Kairi…?_ "

She opened her eyes.

Except, she did not wake up from sleeping—she simply opened her eyes into a dream.

Kairi found herself in the place that Riku referred to as the heart station, standing on beautiful stained glass which she knew formed some sort of picture. She also knew it probably depicted herself, in some fashion, but, it was impossible to tell when she was _standing_ on it.

She… was not alone here, either.

Standing just a few feet away from her, slightly away from the middle of the platform, was Namine.

Namine's hands were folded in front of her, and besides an upwards flick of her eyes at Kairi, her gaze was directed downwards. Everything about her body language screamed she was uncomfortable, if not nervous or even scared. The latter two emotions where what Kairi could feel banging around in the back of her mind, along with the rest of her awareness of Namine. There were many things they could not keep from each other, seeing as they currently shared a heart space.

"I'm… I'm sorry to have called you like this…" Namine whispered. Even as she spoke, she did not make eye contact with Kairi.

"What? Oh, no big deal," Kairi assured her. If she was worried, it was only because of how Namine was acting. She'd spoken with her Other various times over the past few months, ever since she became aware that Namine was here, and they got along well. But there was something… _heavy,_ that weighed in the air right now. Kairi didn't like it.

"It was just… the only way I could talk to you like this…"

"Face to face?" Kairi asked.

Namine nodded. "Yes."

Kairi eyed her carefully. Namine looked almost exactly as she remembered—pale, blonde, _small._ She was already small in stature, but she curled in on herself now, as if to make herself even smaller. Kairi thought Namine had seemed a little more confident last time they'd spoken face to face (that was when Namine had rescued her from Saix), but now, all that confidence was gone.

"Namine…" she began, only Namine was speaking before she could finish.

"I- I thought it was time you knew about…" Namine swallowed hard. "About Castle Oblivion."

Kairi's eyebrows shot up into her hairline. That was the last thing she'd expected to hear. "Are… are you sure?" she asked. She couldn't deny she was curious, but the heavy air and the way Namine seemed to tremble—not to mention the uncertainty she felt in her mind, uncertainty that came from Namine.

"Kairi, please, I know you want to know…"

"Well, yeah, but I don't wanna make you talk about it if you, y'know, don't want to."

It was funny, how Namine chose to feel Kairi's curiosity but ignore everything else. How she chose to ignore how little Kairi wanted to put her friend in a position she was uncomfortable with. Ignore how worried Kairi currently was about her. Kairi _was_ curious about Castle Oblivion, yes, but she knew the subject wasn't any easy one for Namine…

"No, I… I wouldn't have called you down here if I wasn't sure," Namine answered. Then in a slight bend of the world around them, she summoned a chair to sit down in, and her sketchbook appeared out of nowhere. "Do… do you mind?" she asked, pencil poised on the page, eyes wide as they asked Kairi for permission.

Kairi shook her head, a little confused. "Uh… I guess not?"

"I'm sorry, it'll just be easier to speak if I keep my hands busy," Namine explained.

"Oh, then, yeah!" Kairi said. Kairi settled herself on the ground, preparing to listen. (It did not occur to her to summon a chair like Namine had.) "By all means, go for it!"

"Thank you…" Namine whispered, and with a deep breath, she began to explain.

She explained what she knew of Marluxia's plans, and how they made her rewrite Sora's memory to make him her literal servant, how they intended to use him through her to take down the rest of the Organization. She explained what she did to Sora's memory—every single detail, Kairi was sure—and how she'd tried to replace Kairi with herself in his heart.

The news stung to hear, and Kairi would be lying if she said she wasn't a little angry by the idea. But the anger didn't last long. Namine kept talking, now about how Sora saved her, chose to forget her, the year spent repairing his memory. Namine's frantic voice, and the cool of the stained glass against her skin grounded her, calmed her. And though Namine didn't say it, Kairi could feel the disappointment and the sadness that she felt about Sora choosing to forget her.

"It's alright," Kairi broke in, cutting Namine off in the middle of what was still an explanation about repairing Sora's memory and how she was sorry it took so long or something. Namine stared at her, and Kairi took a deep breath, so that her voice would remain steady. "It's alright," she repeated. "I mean, I can't say I'm thrilled, but you put his memory back together, didn't you? And that Marluxia guy made you do it to begin with, didn't he?"

"I… Yes, he… he made me," Namine answered. She hesitated a moment, fingers curling around the corners of her sketchbook. She was trembling. "But- But I _wanted_ to do it," she said, and had this not been Kairi's heart, she might not have heard, for how quiet Namine was. "I _wanted_ to… I was lonely, and I wanted someone who would… who…"

She didn't finish. Unfortunately for her, the words she probably wanted left unsaid still reverberated in Kairi's mind. Stray thoughts slipped through a lot when you shared a heart. And this thought made Kairi's heart stop.

 _"I wanted someone who would love me."_

Namine went very rigid. Kairi gaped at her, horrified, _heartbroken._ And worse, as she sorted briefly through Namine's memories—most were presented immediately to her, so, it wasn't like she was _prying_ —she found she could count on one hand every moment in which someone had been kind to Namine.

Kairi intended to tell Namine that if it was any consolation, Sora was very eager to finally meet her again, and eager to be friends, but instead she found herself saying:

"Well… you have me."

Namine's eyes got even bigger, which had seemed impossible ten seconds ago. She flushed red, and Kairi flushed a little too, though she couldn't think of much else to say. And, she'd _meant_ it. Maybe she hadn't meant to _say_ it, but that didn't change the fact that she _was_ here for Namine. If only Namine'd see it…

Though, it occurred to Kairi now, perhaps it wasn't that Namine couldn't see it, but rather, did not know how to.

"O-oh!" Namine said. If she wasn't holding her sketchbook so tightly, Kairi thought she might have dropped it in her surprise.

Kairi smiled and shrugged at her. "Well, you _do_ ," she said.

Namine stared a moment more, then quickly ducked her head down. Not for the first time, her emotions were a complete mess and though Kairi could feel them, they were impossible to make much sense of. It was unfortunate, too, because Kairi had never wanted to understand what Namine was feeling more than she did right now.

"A-anyway…" Namine said, very rapidly. "That's… that was all I needed to tell you if you want to go now, you… you can. I'm sorry for taking your time." Namine kept her eyes down and hands clutched around her sketchbook.

Kairi tried not to gape. Namine wasn't _really_ trying to make her go… was she?

"Namine, what…? I _mean_ that!" Kairi shifted so she was on her knees, partially to just get herself a little height. "Maybe I'm not who you expected, or who you wanted, but I _am_ here for you!"

"I-I…" Namine began. That was all she could seem to get out, though.

"And, if this is still about Sora—" Kairi knew it was not, but she pressed on anyway. "—I'm not really that upset. Marluxia made you do it, and you fixed Sora's memory, and it's not entirely your fault, and you're sorry, so, it's fine. Stop blaming yourself so much."

"S-Sorry…" Namine whispered.

She felt stressed about something, though Kairi couldn't quite pinpoint what. Sharing a heart space did allow them a lot of understanding of what was going on in the other's mind, but not a perfect understanding, and sometimes emotions came through without a reason to go with them. A part of her thought Namine might be scared, but of what? Regardless, to lighten the mood, Kairi laughed.

"And, c'mon, stop apologizing so much!" she said. "Like, geeze louise, Namine, who told you you had to be sorry for _breathing?_ "

It was meant to be an exaggeration, a joke, but the moment after she said it she felt the phantom of a sting on her cheek that reminded her much of a slap. Memories were like that, when in the heart space. There were physical, but only just. And as she reached up to touch her cheek, though knowing it was fine, everything clicked into place.

"Oh my _god,_ Namine," she breathed. Her heart felt like it'd been ripped in two, and Namine just sat there, still rigid, still trembling but obviously trying to hide it. She still did not look up from her lap. Her sketchbook had vanished, and she was clutching her knees instead.

Kairi started to get up and go to her, but she only got a step. "Namine, did… did he…?"

"No!" Namine replied quickly, shaking her head. "No, he…" Then all of her confidence vanished. "Not… Marluxia…"

Kairi only had to think a second, and even though she did not know the name and knew less of the person it belonged to, she knew it was right the moment her mind settled on it.

"Larxene."

If Namine had been rigid before, she was stiff as a board now.

Whispers of voices flickered past Kairi's ears, though they were less voices and more shouts and screams and a _horrid_ laughter. Oddly enough, she thought one of those shouts sounded a lot like Riku. But that couldn't be right

"I'm- I'm fine, Kairi, really," Namine said, her voice incredibly tight.

"Did she—"

"I'm fine, Kairi."

"Namine no you're not, you're _terrified_ , and all I did was say her name." Kairi took a few more steps towards Namine. She knew the heart space well enough, but she was still surprised when the steps seemed to move her no closer. Why would Namine…?

"I'm sorry…"

Kairi growled took another step, willing it to work properly this time—

Something struck her.

Her heart stopped. An eternity passed while it refused to beat. Fire flooded her veins and her sight blurred from the sudden pain of it all. She knew that it was just a memory, but that did not make it hurt any less. She couldn't breathe. And worse? All she could hear besides a ringing echo of what might have been laughter was Namine.

"I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm—"

Repeating herself, repeating herself, and sounding so, _so_ scared.

When the pain cleared, and her vision returned, Kairi found herself face down on the ground. She swore she tasted iron in her mouth, even though there was no blood, could be no blood. She took carefully deep breaths as she pushed herself upright. She'd felt scared before and knew well enough how to deal with it—though nothing she remembered quite compared to this sudden terror that made her feel sick to her stomach, terror that didn't even belong to _her._ It was Namine's.

Namine was still sitting in her chair, shaking as if she were crying, or wanted to. Kairi pushed herself up the rest of the way, shocked now to find she was much closer to Namine than she had been before. The heart really was a strange place.

"Was… was that…?" Kairi asked slowly, looking up at Namine.

Namine nodded before she could finish. The air knocked out of Kairi's lungs. Lightning. That was what lightning felt like. She already knew that from accidental misfires during Keyblade Training, but it had never hurt quite like this.

"Did she—?"

Another nod from Namine before Kairi could finish. A new wave of terror passed through Kairi, but she was prepared this time, already breathing deeply to counteract it. Her stomach still churned, though. From the thought of Larxene. Of Namine remembering in such excruciating detail what lightning felt like when hit by it. Of Namine's terror, and what Larxene had done to her—

"Namine…" Kairi whispered. Her chest ached.

"I'm sorry. I'm fine."

Kairi glared a moment, though at this point, she wasn't even surprised. "Stop apologizing, and no you're not, I can _feel_ it Namine." She tapped at her chest. "I can feel… everything you feel…"

Namine's fingers tightened on her knees. "And I'm sorry you had to feel that—"

"It was just a memory."

Namine shook her head.

"She's... just a memory," Kairi tried again. (She dare not say Larxene's name, though there was no reason to, anyway. Namine knew who she meant.) "She can't hurt you."

Namine took a long moment before answering. "Xehanort came back…." she whispered. She'd never looked so small.

"Okay, he did, but if Larxene does, I will kill her myself," Kairi said, without hesitation. "I promise you, Namine. She's not going to touch you—she'll have to go through me!"

Namine laughed, weakly, a laugh just short of tears.

It took Kairi only a moment to realize these words were not new to Namine's ears. Flickers of memory—Namine's memory—flashed through her mind. Promises from the lips of… Riku? No, it couldn't be, it wasn't, and though she was curious to know just who that was if not Riku, (had it really been him screaming earlier?), that didn't matter right now.

No, that didn't matter right now.

All that mattered was Namine.

"You've already heard that promise, haven't you?" Kairi asked. She did not need to. She knew, and Namine knew she knew, but she _had_ to ask. This did not work if she didn't ask.

Namine simply nodded. Kairi more than expected that.

Still, she smiled. "Well, then let me find a new one for you."

Kairi took her time, mulling over the words, considering what she knew of Namine, of what Namine needed to hear, about the memories that kept flickering through her mind—still, none of them hers. It took her a while to craft the perfect words, and she could feel Namine shift uneasily as she waited with unbaited breath, waiting to hear promises she'd heard a thousand times before.

But what Kairi had was nothing Namine had ever heard. Kairi was certain of that, once she'd finished deciding what to say. She was also certain that that was why it needed to be said.

"You're worth the worlds, Namine," Kairi began, quietly, watching Namine carefully. "You're wonderful, you're beautiful, and you're kind and you're brave. You deserve to be loved, you deserve to be your own person, and to be loved for being that."

Namine jolted, and looked up, surprised.

Kairi didn't stop.

"And you don't deserve pain." This was a lot harder to say, but she made herself say it, because Namine needed to hear it. "That doesn't mean pain won't come—I could never promise you that—but I can promise you that if someone ever hurts you, it's not _your fault._ "

Namine stared, mouth hanging open. She looked—felt—surprised, obviously, and happy, maybe, but largely uncertain. Like she had no idea what to do with Kairi's words. All Kairi could do was send _her_ certainty of what she'd said through their link to Namine, just in case Namine wasn't already feeling it. After a moment's hesitation, she sent reassurance along the link as well, whispers of _it's okay, it's okay, it's okay._

She didn't know what else to do, and while Namine's current feelings and entire situation were more than clear to her, it all still seemed unimaginable to have lived as Namine had. Kairi may not have remembered her biological parents' faces, or anything more than scraps of what her grandmother felt and sounded like, but the family that adopted her on Destiny Islands loved her dearly. And Sora and Riku loved her just as well. To have been Namine? To have lived, without ever knowing what it was like to be loved? It was unthinkable. It was terrible.

"I… I mean all that, Namine," Kairi said, since Namine hadn't responded, and since leaving the air empty with silence seemed unbearable. "You are a truly wonderful person and you deserve all the love the worlds have to offer. And I'm so so so sorry that so many terrible things happened to you."

Namine blinked, then looked away a little. "It's not your fault," she whispered.

"Well, I know that," Kairi began, then it occurred to her that Namine might not realize what she meant when she'd said sorry. "It's just… when something bad happens to someone you love, you… you feel bad." The concept wasn't so easy to put into words, but, she did her best. "And I know I can't but I wish I could have done something. No one deserves what you were forced through."

Namine sat there, silent, for a long moment. Her eyes dropped to her lap again.

"D-do you…?" she asked, as if afraid to hear the answer.

"Hmm?"

"Love me."

"Of _course_ I do, Namine!" Kairi laughed, smiling wide, largely just in exasperation that they were still on this. They'd had plenty of time to get to know each other by now, and plenty of time for Kairi to grow to love her. She may not have been as loving and as accepting as Sora was—not that anyone really could be—but Kairi didn't need to be. Loving Namine was like second nature.

Besides, they shared a heart. That, even without the months of interacting, was more than enough.

Namine slowly looked up to Kairi, hesitantly meeting her eyes, her lips twitching to form a smile of her own. Namine's happiness bubbled in the back of Kairi's mind, and it was such a good thing to feel.

"Now get out of that chair and get over here," Kairi said. "I think you really need a hug!"


	2. Someone I love

**Summary:** Kairi happens on Larxene while out on a mission, and there's only one thing to do then. Also written for Kairi Week.

 **abuse mentions tw** again though less obvious than they were in the last chapter, **violence tw** but it's not gory or terribly graphic imo.

* * *

Kairi stopped short at a sickeningly familiar sight of blonde hair in the crowd of people moving away from the Heartless that had appeared the moment she had arrived. She cast a hasty Holy—Aerith had taught her that one, though perhaps Salvation, which Queen Minnie had taught her, would've been the better choice—to clear the Heartless, then marched toward the owner of said blonde hair. She was moving pretty quickly, shoving people out of her way, grumbling loudly about just wanting to _lay low._

"Hey, you!" Kairi shouted, banishing her Keyblade. She'd need her hands free for this. A few people turned around, but kept on bustling the moment they were certain her shout had not been for them. Kairi waited a moment, grimacing when she received no response. She called again. " _Larxene!_ "

She did not have another name for the woman, and even if Larxene went by something different now, like a lot of other former Organization members, Kairi didn't care. Larxene slowly turned around, murder in her eyes. She waited for the rest of the crowd to finish clearing before speaking.

"I was wondering when one of you Keyblade brats were going to come hunt me down…" She sighed dramatically. But Kairi, having learned more than enough from Namine's memories, was moving while Larxene was too busy putting on a show of lamenting her circumstances to notice. She charged at Larxene and punched her in the face—something of a promise she'd made to Namine.

The force of the blow, with Kairi _running_ before landing it, should've knocked Larxene off her feet. She only staggered back a step. Grabbed Kairi by the wrist. There was a twist, a shock of electricity, and then Kairi found herself on the ground. Larxene looked down on her, satisfied, dusting her hands off.

A brief surge of terror restricted Kairi's lungs—with her on the ground and Larxene above her and everything—a side-effect of having Namine in her heart so long, of being exposed to so many ill memories. But Kairi forced herself to breathe. Forced herself to channel those memories not into fear, but into fury.

As she rolled to her feet, she thanked all her lucky stars that Namine had her own body now, and was back at home, blissfully unaware of this and completely safe. Larxene raised her eyebrows, amused, waiting for her to move. Kairi summoned her Keyblade. It came in a rush of light and warmth and firm feelings of Namine and Namine being _safe._ She rushed at Larxene again.

Larxene ducked away from her Keyblade, drove her elbow into Kairi's gut. Kairi flew backwards, tumbled against the ground. It was quite a few seconds before she could breathe again.

"Do I get to know _why_ you're attacking me?" Larxene asked. "I don't even recognize you!" She didn't sound the slightest bit threatened. She sounded like she was enjoying herself, and it made Kairi's blood boil.

"This is for _Namine!_ " she screamed, getting back on her feet.

"Namine, huh?" Larxene laughed. Dodged the swing of Kairi's Keyblade. Kairi was able to dodge the returning punch, but not the lightning bolt that hit her leg. Even at a non-vital point, it still made her stagger. Larxene continued talking, in clear control of the situation and _loving_ it. "I see the little witch is still up to her old tricks… I never would've thought she'd go after someone like _you,_ though." She drummed her chin thoughtfully, having enough time to do so, seeing as Kairi was on the ground again. "But, I suppose tastes change—"

"SHUT UP!" Kairi roared. She had to scream from the ground, the electricity in her legs making it currently impossible to stand back up. Her muscles were like jelly. And to think Namine had had to put up with— "You have _no idea_ what you're talking about!"

"I know you wouldn't be the first person who she's manipulated into thinking they loved her. In fact, you'd be the third, and that's only who I've met _personally._ "

Kairi grit her teeth. She cast a quick Cure on herself, bringing feeling back to her legs, then channeled the residual energy still in her fingertips into a fireball. Larxene dodged that, but when Kairi swung her Keyblade again, it connected.

"She's _not_ like that!" Kairi argued, as she backed out of Larxene's immediate range. Better. Much better, considering she was still on her feet.

Larxene just laughed. She charged this time, with a speed that still managed to surprise Kairi. The first punch landed. The second Kairi managed to block. She was grateful for it, too. That one had knives.

"I _know_ what she did to Sora," Kairi continued. She took a step back, shifted her weight, pushed Larxene off her. "But I know that _you_ made her do it!" She ran forward, swinging, swinging again, screaming. "You used her, you _abused_ her, and you have the nerve to blame _her_ for it?!"

Larxene darted out of the reach of Kairi's blade, clearly more accustomed to the dance of battle than Kairi was. "She always _did_ like having someone nice and strong to protect her," she said, casually. The glint in her eyes alone as she watched Kairi, waiting for a reaction, was enough to make Kairi want to do murder.

"SHUUUUT UPP!" She shouted, running forward again.

It was a kick to the side that knocked her off her feet this time. Larxene straightened and rolled her neck like she did this sort of thing all the time.

"So, little miss hero, would you mind introducing yourself?"

"I'm. _Kairi!_ "

Larxene seemed positively thrilled to hear this news. "Oh ho! So she redid your memories to keep you away from Sora, did she!"

"You know _literally nothing_ about her!"

It was so infuriating to hear Larxene talk about Namine like that. A part of Kairi knew Larxene was only doing it _to_ make her angry, but she was too angry to care about it anymore. Namine was _not_ a manipulative witch! If anyone was manipulative, it was Larxene. And even if _she_ wasn't a witch, she was certainly another word Kairi knew that happened to rhyme.

"Where is Namine, anyway?" Larxene asked. She didn't attack—and wouldn't, Kairi knew, so long as she could draw out this bait and keep getting a rise out of Kairi. "Is she here? I'd _love_ to see her pretty little face again."

Kairi shuddered at that tone of voice. "She's somewhere safe!" she answered, hands tight on her Keyblade. In reality, Namine was probably alone right now, but like hell Kairi'd tell Larxene _that._ "Somewhere with a lot of people who won't let you anywhere _near her._ I know for certain that _I_ won't!"

Kairi charged again.

Larxene rolled her eyes, as if she'd heard that before.

Maybe she had. She was right, in any case, saying that Kairi was not the first person to have protected Namine. She was just wrong in the reasons why. Kairi had no false memories written a very careful way that would make her fall in love with Namine. She just had real memories, and a burning desire to make Larxene pay.

Kairi feinted a swing, then backed off, throwing all the light she could summon at Larxene. Tossing magic haphazardly wasn't safe, everyone she knew had told her that, but she didn't care. While Larxene was still dazed from the light, Kairi attacked, packing all her anger into each blow. She knew what Larxene had done to Namine. She knew all too well. Namine had spent months, nestled in the back of her heart, and when you shared a heart, the lines between your things and their things got blurred. Memories were no exception.

Larxene fought back, of course, and she fought hard. Her punches hurt. Her knives stung. Her lightning always made Kairi stagger. But Kairi kept going. She made herself thing of this like any other battle against a large Heartless, or a spar against Xion. (Xion was always the meanest in spars.) It was just like that, except there was so much more at stake, so she did not let herself get knocked off her feet again.

She kept her mind fixed on Namine. On the pain Namine had suffered, had been made to suffer. A year's worth of cruelty and _it's your fault_ and _you aren't worth anything._ Not all of that was Larxene, but a lot of it was, and Larxene was who was here now. Kairi focused on Namine's pain, and channeled it through her Keyblade, through her fingertips into more reckless blasts of light.

It seemed to be working.

"We didn't _make_ her!" Larxene shouted. She tried to distance herself from Kairi, but Kairi kept on her. "We made the _suggestion,_ of course, about what to do with Sora, but she was more than eager to do it!" The taunt was not like the others. Larxene didn't sound scared—Kairi could never imagine her sounding scared—but her tone was more frantic. She did not sound so much like she was enjoying herself, now.

"Of course she was. All she wanted was for someone to love her." Kairi replied. "Is that a surprise, given how you treated her?" She did not think about how she moved her feet or how she swung her Keyblade, now. That was second nature, a flowing rhythm her body moved to without thought.

She did not think about it. She thought about Namine.

Namine, who'd taken months before she could really look anyone in the eye. Namine, who still flinched whenever someone raised their voice, regardless of why. Namine, who tacked on an _I'm sorry_ to the end of nearly every sentence. Namine, who had to ask almost fifty times if Kairi loved her before she finally believed it.

She thought of Namine, and how much she loved her.

She thought of Larxene, and how much she hated her.

" _Enough!_ " Larxene shrieked. Her knives connected with Kairi's stomach, and the strongest surge of lightning Kairi had ever felt surged from them into her skin. She yelped and staggered backwards. She stayed on her feet, at least, but Larxene managed to put plenty distance between them while she was recovering.

Larxene let out a long sigh that sounded like it were just for show. Her sick grin was back on her face. "Well, it was nice meeting you, Kairi!" she said. Her tone had returned to deathly sweet, and if it weren't for the fact Kairi knew, Kairi might never had guessed she'd just been in a battle. "Maybe I'll see you again soon, _especially_ if you stick around Namine… Ta-ta!"

A dark corridor enveloped her, and she was gone.

Kairi let out a long breath and banished her Keyblade. Namine…

 **xxx**

Namine looked up in surprise when Kairi opened the door. Kairi just smiled weakly at her, glad to see she was still here, not to mention safe. Namine obviously saw the injuries that Kairi was ignoring, because it was only a second later that Namine was helping her stagger into the room, and only a second more before Namine was easing her onto the floor, resting her head in her lap.

"What _happened?_ " Namine asked, in a quiet voice. Her fingers shifted through Kairi's hair until they could rest on Kairi's temples. Kairi let out a deep sigh as Namine's healing magic poured through her body—why Namine insisted on healing like this, by focusing her magic at your head before your injuries, Kairi still wasn't sure, but it was just as effective, so what did it matter?

Kairi laughed, lightly. "I just beat the shit out of Larxene," she said.

Namine went rigid. The flow of healing magic stopped abruptly. Kairi wasn't surprised, though she did wonder why Namine hadn't known before now. They did not quite have the same understanding of each other as they did when they shared a heartspace, but they still seemed to have an understanding close to telepathy, sometimes.

"You saw her…" Namine whispered. "She's…"

Kairi frowned at the slight buzz of magic inside her brain—that would be Namine, digging through her surface memories—though she could not really blame Namine for wanting to check. Not about this. Kairi sighed.

"It's alright, Namine, I'm more mad than I am hurt."

"I-is she…?"

"No, I didn't kill her, she left once things started looking rough." Kairi snorted. Larxene was awful and cruel, but the moment the situation wasn't in her control, she turned into a right coward, it seemed. The smile on Kairi's lips was quick to fade, though. "Uh, you should probably stick around me or someone else at all times until she's taken care of, by the way. She made me a vague promise which might have implied her coming after you."

Namine shuddered.

Kairi reached over and put a hand on her arm, bending her head back so she could look up at Namine. Namine was looking straight ahead, and a lot paler than normal.

"I won't let her get you," Kairi said. "No one will, trust me."

Namine just nodded.

Kairi chewed her lip and put her head in a more comfortable position. "We'll need to tell Sora and Riku, by the way," she said. "Especially since I didn't actually get my mission done—I spent the whole time fighting Larxene, then wanted to come back here to make sure you were okay right away."

"Thank you…" Namine whispered.

"Yeah."

"You're… as healed up as I can get you, by the way…" Namine cleared her throat, and gently pushed Kairi out of her lap and upright. "We should ask Aqua or Sora to finish healing you, probably…. And, let them know, like you said."

"Uhuh." Kairi got to her feet, then offered out a hand to help Namine up. "Thanks for healing me." She knew that Namine could've healed her completely, and the only reason she'd stopped was because Kairi mentioned Larxene and she now did not feel comfortable enough to continue, but she didn't mention that. There was no reason to.

"It was the least I could do," Namine answered, as she got to her feet as well. She opened her mouth, hesitated a long moment, then in a very quiet voice, with her eyes at the ground, said: "Thanks for beating her up for me…"

Kairi beamed.

"Any day!"


	3. Bravery

**Summary:** Larxene finally follows up on her promise. Written for Namine Week on tumblr! (Currently going as of July 27th.)

 **abuse tw,** it's most obvious in this chapter, and again with the **violence tw** because it's another battle.

* * *

"You sure you don't want to spar with me, Namine?" Xion called.

"Positive," Namine replied. She sketched idly as she watched Xion run through her forms. She did not have any sort of telepathic link with Xion like she had with Kairi, but it was clear that Xion was itching to fight something. Traverse Town was a nice place out of the way where no one would give you odd looks, ever, but since the Keyhole had been sealed, there were no more Heartless. She kicked her heels against the wall she was sitting on, then sighed.

"Are you sure you don't want to go out and actually find Heartless to kill?" she asked. The only reason Xion _wasn't_ out fighting Heartless right now was because she was the only one available to, well… to _babysit_ Namine wouldn't be a kind way to put it, but even Namine wasn't sure what else to say. It wasn't that she _couldn't_ fight Heartless, either, it just wasn't her idea of a fun pastime.

"Nah, I'm fine!" Xion laughed. "A practice dummy would be nice."

"We could go to Yen Sid's—"

"And get yelled at when I don't do everything perfectly? No way! Too many people hang around there, anyway."

"Radiant Garden has Heartless…"

"It's fine, Namine!" Xion said. She cracked her neck, then banished her Keyblade and came over to lean against the wall next to Namine. "Don't you think this is getting ridiculous, though?" She craned her head back so she could look at Namine. "When do you think we can let you go around by yourself again, huh?"

Namine just shrugged. She grimaced at her sketchbook, though—she had been sketching Xion in fighting poses, but now that Xion had paused her practice… "When Larxene's gone," she answered, thumbing the pages of her book.

Xion raised her eyebrows. "You don't mind all this?"

"I'd rather this than her finding me alone," Namine said. That was certain. "I could hold my own now better than I could then, sure, but…" But Larxene was a different story. But fighting Heartless was different than standing up to the woman who still haunted her nightmares.

"Right, right," Xion agreed, with a sigh. She folded her hands behind her head. "What are we supposed to do with her if she shows up, again?"

"I dunno, Sora said we should probably just treat her like one of the Norts."

"Kill her?"

There was a note of surprise in Xion's voice. Namine didn't look at her, pretended like the fact she'd just casually mentioned killing someone wasn't such a big deal.

"Mm," she muttered, nodding. "Now, can we stop—"

"Oh, yeah! Sorry." Xion pushed off from the wall, flashing Namine a lopsided smirk. "You _sure_ you don't want to spar with me?" she asked, summoning her Keyblade to her.

" _Positive!_ " Namine repeated. Fighting was never her idea of a good time, and Xion was ruthless besides. Even if she stood a chance against Xion, she wouldn't want to spar _here,_ when they were nowhere near someone who could heal.

Xion put her hands up in an _if-you-say-so_ gesture, and returned to practicing her forms. Namine let out a long breath, and started sketching again, watching Xion carefully to get the shapes all right. Maybe she should tell Xion what she was up to. Xion'd probably _love_ to pose for a picture…

Just as she started to suggest the idea to Xion, there was a sudden presence behind her, and then someone was yanking her up by the arm and clamping a hand over her mouth. Her sketchbook fell to the ground below. Namine went very rigid, recognizing the touch well enough.

"Don't scream, and don't struggle," Larxene whispered in her ear. "And we won't have a problem."

Namine was lucky that Xion noticed almost immediately, and flash-stepped over to her rescue. She wasn't sure _what_ Xion did, but she knew that a second later she was on the ground and out of Larxene's grasp.

There was a flash of a dark corridor, then Larxene was standing on the opposite side of the Second District, on the same level that Namine had fallen to. Namine staggered to her feet. Xion jumped down to stand between her and Larxene. It was a good thing that Traverse Town had very few residents. No one was here to watch, or to get hurt.

"Aw, Kairi's not here, is she?" Larxene asked. If she was annoyed her previous attempt at… whatever that had been—Namine didn't want to think about it—had failed, she wasn't showing it. There was the typical amused glint in her eyes, and her mouth was only drawn in mock-disappointment. "Shame, I had the perfect opening line all planned and everything, but it only would've worked if Kairi had been here…"

"Well, too bad, you get me instead!" Xion called.

"Riiight," Larxene said, dragging the word out. She seemed to be considering the situation carefully, probably noting down every detail of how they stood, of how Xion appeared to be protecting Namine, likely racking her mind for bait material. "And uh, _you_ are?"

"Xion."

"Ohh! Are you that tagalong fourteenth member of Organization 13?"

Xion growled a little. "Yeah, I was. And?"

Larxene shrugged, trying to make herself appear casual. Namine knew better, but she doubted Xion did. "I just… didn't know you were a girl, is all."

Xion shouted out in anger. Had Namine not quickly grabbed her by the shoulders, she would've launched herself at Larxene then and there. Namine tried not to think about the way Larxene's eyes widened, or the way her lips twitched into a smile.

"Yeah, well, I had no idea you were such a _bitch!_ " Xion yelled back. Namine cringed a little. Larxene just laughed.

"What about you, Namine?" she called. Her tone was pleasant enough, if, she hadn't been Larxene, anyway. "How have you been?"

"A lot better," Namine replied. She was proud to say there was no catch in her voice, though there was a slight clench in her chest. Xion sent a worried half-glance over her shoulder at her, but not enough of one that she was made to take her eyes off of Larxene.

Larxene rolled her eyes. "Grew a backbone as well as a conscience, did you?" She did not sound very pleasant anymore.

"Don't let her bait you," Xion hissed.

Namine raised her eyebrows. "You're one to talk!"

"What about Sora, hmm?" Larxene called. "I know you were just _dying_ to meet him all that time ago—dying to do _more_ than meet him, if I remember correctly…"

"OH, ENOUGH TALK!" Xion yelled, then she rushed forward, Keyblade bared. Larxene jumped out of the way and tossed her knives at Xion like it was second nature.

"I have!" Namine answered, raising her voice to be heard over Xion's laughs—she'd always thrived in battle—and Larxene's not-so-quiet cackles when she landed a hit. "I _have_ seen Sora lately, and he's doing just fine!" Namine prepared an all-inclusive shield spell for herself, one that Aerith had taught her. It was largely just to protect herself from the lightning Larxene would inevitably throw, but it had the added bonus of no physical force being able to come within five inches of her. "We're good friends," she continued, "and I didn't have to do anything to his memory to get it that way."

Larxene backed out of the way of Xion's Keyblade again, knocking Xion to the ground with a well-placed kick to the stomach. She put a hand on her hip, considering Namine. " _Hmm,_ " she said, and that was all she said, in a semi-disapproving tone that ruffled Namine more than any taunt could have. She swallowed her anger, as well as a thread of fear. Larxene did _not_ know her.

"We all _love_ Namine," Xion said as she got back on her feet. "She's great, and kind, and funny, even if she is a little quiet sometimes!" She jumped back and raised her Keyblade to unleash Ragnarok.

Namine smiled a little to herself, appreciating Xion defending her, even if not with the most eloquent of words. She ran through the list of spells she knew, trying to think of how she could help in this fight. Unfortunately, Namine knew Larxene to be pretty resilient to magic. And, shield or no, she didn't exactly want to engage Larxene in _battle._

Xion's Ragnarok hit Larxene full on, but Larxene was quick to recover, immediately directing her attention at Namine.

"Ah, I knew you'd sink this far again! Just Sora wasn't enough for you, was he?"

Namine knew it was a taunt, between the half-grin Larxene was trying to hide and the fact her voice was filled only with mock anger—Larxene's real anger sounded nothing like that—but it still made her blood boil. She was shouting before she'd thought about it.

"I DIDN'T MANPULATE ANYONE'S MEMORIES!" she protested.

Larxene just smiled at her. "Of course you didn't," she said, in the tone of someone who was agreeing with you despite knowing what you were saying wasn't true. Namine bit her lip hard, trembling where she stood.

"She _didn't!_ " Xion shouted.

"Please, like you'd know if she did."

Namine swallowed the bile in her throat, watching as Xion darted back into the fight again. It wasn't easy to say who was winning, if anyone was at this point, but Larxene kept sending knowing looks at Namine every moment she had the chance. Namine knew she hadn't done anything, of course. That didn't stop Larxene's looks from making her skin crawl.

"Not going to say anything, Namine?" Larxene called, easily dodging Xion's blade and bursts of magic. "Shouldn't you do Xion here the favor of breaking her heart, like you—"

Namine turned away and tuned out Larxene's voice as well as she could. When the flow of battle brought Xion closer to her again, she grabbed Xion by the arm and pulled her to a stop.

"Hang on, Xion, listen!" she said, loudly—those words had been meant for Larxene to hear, too.

"Does she _really_ think you did something to my memories!?" Xion demanded.

Namine tossed up a sound-proofing spell before speaking. Rinoa had taught her that one. It made it so no one outside of a five foot radius of you could hear what was being said. Useful to discuss battle plans while on the battlefield, though you had to get creative with it.

"No, she's just trying to get under my skin," Namine replied. "And please trust me when I say I haven't done any—"

Xion sent her a look that clearly suggested she was offended that Namine was suggesting that. "Please, Namine, like I'd really think you had! I might not know much about Larxene, but c'mon, I know enough not to trust her."

"Right. Sorry."

"Come on, Namine," Larxene called. "No need to be so quiet about it. If you're telling her the truth, I'd _love_ to hear it!"

Xion scowled, grip tightening on her Keyblade.

"Just… don't… pay attention to it," Namine said. It was a bit hard to say the words, and the thought of sitting here and listening to Larxene insist she'd done something when she hadn't made her sick. But, if she'd learned anything in Castle Oblivion… "If we don't react, she'll get bored and move on to something else. Probably."

"Alright…" Xion sighed, shrugging and shaking her head. "Can I?" She nodded towards Larxene again. Namine nodded quickly. Larxene would only wait so long.

"Just, when you have a moment—"

"Uh-huh!"

Xion dove at Larxene again, a burst of Firaga leaving her hand before she swung with her Keyblade. Namine watched with a knot in her stomach, wondering how long it would be before Larxene decided to come for her directly.

"Tell me you have a plan for what to do with her," Xion said, as she jumped back to join Namine.

"No. Sorry." Namine swallowed. "Get help…?"

Xion shook her head adamantly. "No way! I've got this."

"You know, I don't appreciate being _ignored!_ " Larxene shouted, throwing her knives at them. Namine cringed, though her shield protected her from the ones aimed at her. Xion blocked the rest with her Keyblade.

"Don't know why I didn't do this sooner," she grumbled, then raised her Keyblade at Larxene and shouted: "STOP!" Larxene froze where she stood, mouth open in what was probably the start of a foul comment.

"Good thinking," Namine said, glad the sound-proofing spell hadn't prevented Xion's magic. Not that it should've to begin with, but, it was still something to be thankful for. She would've taken it down, except she couldn't remember whether or not someone who was Stopped could still hear, and better safe than sorry. "Alright, we won't get help," she assured Xion. "What do we do then?"

"You're the one who knows who we're dealing with," Xion replied.

Namine groaned, though she'd expected that. It was just, she hadn't thought much about it, figuring Kairi would when it came up, or that Sora or Riku would come up with something more concrete than to just "treat her like one of the Norts". Actually _killing_ Larxene wasn't something easy to think about—never mind the fact someone else would be doing all the work. The thought still made Namine shiver.

Xion watched her expectantly, though, waiting for her answer. Namine really was going to have to come up with the plan.

She swallowed hard.

"We… we need to…" she began, though she was not sure where to go with it. "She'll probably leave once she thinks she's losing, so…" Namine's eyes slowly widened. "We need to make her think she isn't losing," she whispered.

Xion nodded. "How?"

"Me."

Xion's confidence immediately turned to horror. Namine shifted uncomfortably, sending another glance at Larxene. How long did they have until that Stop spell wore off?

"Namine, _no!_ You can't—"

"It's fine."

Her stomach was roiling. It did not feel fine.

"You can't use yourself as bait!"

Namine swallowed hard. She was not really looking forward to this, but she could see no other way. Even getting help wouldn't guarantee anything. She held out her hand.

"Give me that bangle of yours."

"Which one?—ohh!" Xion quickly reached to take one of her various bangles off her arm—this one protected completely against Fire magic, and more importantly, against Thunder magic. The only reason why Namine didn't have one of her own was that they were hard to come by, and though she'd checked the stores almost every day since Kairi'd encountered Larxene, they were all out of stock right now. "Won't she notice?" Xion asked.

Namine shook her head as she snapped the bangle on her own arm, much higher than Xion wore it, so it wouldn't slide. "I've had a lot of practice. She'll never know."

Xion's eyes narrowed with concern. "She doesn't need lightning to hurt you."

"I can take a few hits if it means taking her down," Namine said. "You'll have to be quick, though. Before she runs off regardless, or worse, decides to take me with her."

Xion grinned. "Oh, you can count on it."

Namine nodded, grinding her teeth as she waited for the Stop to wear off, waited to make her move.

Larxene staggered a little when the spell was released, as anyone would if they were mid-step when they'd been Stopped. She was glaring up a storm. "Well, wasn't that _rude!_ "

Before Larxene could say or do anything more, and before Namine could second guess herself, she ran up to Larxene, dropping her shield spell as she went. She had no weapon, just a burst of Blizzard between her hands.

Of course, this was Larxene, so she was quick to counter. The Blizzard evaporated like it was nothing. An elbow met Namine's gut, her feet were knocked out from under her. She could feel the tingling of a lightning bolt that could do no more than tickle while wearing Xion's bangle, and cried out—not all of it faked. Her stomach hurt, and so did the side she'd fallen on.

"A conscience, a backbone, _and_ a sense of daring!" Larxene was bending down, picking her up by the front of her shirt, lifting her off the ground a few inches. "What's become of you, Namine?"

Namine squeezed her eyes shut and bit her lip. _C'mon, Xion!_ she thought desperately. She did not have to make herself whimper, and she was more than grateful to hear Xion's shout and feel Larxene drop her to the ground. She pushed herself up slowly, considering Xion and Larxene battling in front of her. She'd have to draw Larxene's back to her in a moment… There—!

Namine threw herself forward, successfully intercepting a bolt of lightning before it hit Xion. Xion cried her name. Larxene laughed gleefully.

"Why do you always go through so much trouble to protect the people you've already hurt?" Larxene asked. "As if I'm going to do more damage than you've already done!"

"I didn't… rewrite… Xion's memories," Namine hissed between gasps of air. The lightning had not hurt her, but the force of landing on the ground had definitely knocked the air out of her lungs. Her arm felt raw where it'd scraped against the ground. If she did not have to pretend she felt the lightning supposedly coursing through her body, she would have tossed up a cure for herself.

"Then why _else_ is she protecting you?" Larxene asked. She stepped forward, and Namine curled in on herself. Getting to her feet would've been the best idea now, but her legs felt frozen. "Don't tell me it's because she actually loves you! You and I both know that no one could _possibly—_ "

"OH SHUT UP!" Xion screamed. She ran at Larxene again.

Larxene groaned. "I am _so_ tired of dealing with you," she grumbled. She sidestepped and tripped Xion, making Xion yelp with surprise and land flat on her face. Larxene smiled to herself, then picked Xion up by the scruff of her neck. "Stay out of my way," she warned, pumping Xion full of lightning before tossing her to the other side of the area.

" _XION!_ " Namine yelled.

"She can't help you now," Larxene said, snorting with annoyance. "Now get up. I didn't come all this way for nothing."

Namine shook Larxene's grip off her arm and scrambled backwards. "N- _no!_ " she said, tossing up the shield spell again. _C'mon Xion! You've taken worse hits than that!_ Her legs were like jelly, but she made herself stand. "I don't know what you want with me, b-b-but I won't do it! I won't, Larxene! Y-you don't control me!"

Larxene glared. Worst of all, when she spoke, there was still a touch of amusement in her tone. "Well, maybe not now, but it doesn't seem like it'll be hard to teach you how to listen again."

Namine shuddered. Her heart raced in her throat. Even with a shield spell and a bracelet to protect her from every bolt of lightning, she had never felt more vulnerable.

But she thought of Xion's confidence and certainty. Kairi's determination and bravery. How patient Aerith had been when she asked to learn every defensive spell Aerith knew. Sora's bear hugs. The way Ventus smiled at her like an old friend though they hadn't known each other for long. How Aqua went after anyone who cast Thunder magic within twenty feet of her. She thought about how Xion would help her back up after this was all over. She thought about the warmth that filled her when on the hundredth time Kairi said the words _I love you,_ she believed it.

"No!" she said, and her voice did not shake this time. "I won't let you use me again!"

Light exploded from her, and for a moment, she was scared—she'd never channeled light before, and certainly never on this level—but then she felt a nudge in the back of her mind that felt like Kairi. She let it guide her, and moved her hands to direct the blast of light in a more controlled manner. Larxene shrieked. The light faded.

Namine staggered, but only a step. She should've felt drained, but in reality she'd never felt more alive, more certain of herself.

Larxene staggered as well, eyes wide in a panic. Before she could recover, though, a surge of energy went through the area. One that told Namine Xion'd activated her limit. She heard Xion's fierce cry a second later, and then Xion was descending on Larxene, Keyblade indistinguishable from a blade of pure light in her hands. She attacked with a rapid combo, then a decisive slice.

Larxene faded in wisps of darkness before she had the chance to scream.

Namine stood there, stunned, eyes meeting with Xion's.

Then Xion banished her Keyblade and grinned widely. "That was _fantastic!_ " she said, bounding over and offering a hand out to Namine. "I didn't know you could do that!"

Namine took Xion's hand, though she did not exactly need it to support herself. "Neither did I," she said, just as amazed as Xion.

"You alright?" Xion asked.

Namine nodded. "Yeah," she said. Her heart was still racing, but she got the feeling that was more adrenaline than anything else.

Xion eyed her, looking as if she did not believe it. Still, she kept smiling, and tossed up a Cure for Namine. "Well, why don't we get your sketchbook and what we can of your pencils, then go see if Kairi's still busy?" she said. "I'm sure she'd love to hear the news."

Namine laughed a little, knowing this was Xion's not-so-subtle way of telling Namine that she should talk to Kairi because Xion didn't think she was _really_ okay. Namine appreciated Xion's sentiment, though, and admitted to herself that it would be nice to see Kairi right now. She nodded.

 **xxx**

"You did it!" Kairi laughed, pulling her into a tight hug. "I'm so proud of you!"

Namine let out a long sigh of relief, relaxing into Kairi's embrace. Maybe Xion'd been right about her needing to talk to Kairi.

"She's gone…" Namine whispered, happily. "She's gone."


End file.
